Vincent Demieri, Pro Stock winner, from Dix Hills, NY.

Words and photos by Jake Amatisto

It's been a few years since the National Muscle Car Association has been able to finish a race at Beech Bend Raceway Park without Mother Nature interfering, so when rain clouds only visited for a short duration in the morning on Saturday, August 6, it left the rest of the weekend open to host one killer drag race.

Also, the popular Dave Duell Classic was being held in Bowling Green for the first time after the closing of Gateway International Raceway near St. Louis, and featured over 50 of the coolest nostalgic muscle cars in the country battling it out for a pile of cash and prizes. The event is also the first time NMCA racers could win an NHRA Wally due to the addition of the old NHRA Unleashed series, so you know everyone was on their game at this event.
     
In Pro Street, Chris Rini topped the field in qualifying with a clean 6.10 at 233 mph, followed by Joe Dunne with a 6.14, and in third was Alex Viscardi with a 6.15 at 234 mph. But it was Vincent Demieri who was able to pull out the event win in Bowling Green. He took out Dave Pierce in the first round by virtue of a 6.13 run, which pitted him against the turbocharged Ford of Viscardi in round two. Viscardi left first with an .024 to Demieri's .212 reaction, but Demieri's 6.24 was enough to get past Viscardi's 6.45.

A bye into the final meant he would face Joe Dunne. Although Demieri lost the holeshot war, his machine was on a rail and was able to outrun Dunne, 6.21 to a lifting 7.75, grabbing his first event win with the NMCA. 

Super Street 10.5W saw seven outlaws duking it out for supreme glory and some cash at Beech Bend Raceway. Mike Murillo, who has been doing very well this year in both NMRA and NMCA, got the number one spot with a 6.70 at 216 mph, with Tony Nesbitt and Willard Kinzer coming in second and third with their 6.81 and 7.03, respectively.

When eliminations started, Murillo hacked through the field methodically, starting with a first round bye, then in the second round Murillo got around Steve Summers supercharged machine with a 6.95 to 7.37, which sent him to face Ed Rice in the final round. When the light dropped in the final, Murillo left first and never looked back, taking down Rice in a 7.27 to 7.45 battle.       
     
In Nostalgia Pro Street, Jeff Colletta led the qualifying pack with a 7.31 at 188 mph, followed by Jim Jarrett with a 7.32 at 187 mph, and third was Andy Vogt with his 7.42 at 184 mph. It was Jarrett who managed to make it all the way to the final in BG, starting with a win over Chuck Demory Jr., who redlit. In round two, Jarrett beat out Skip Baskin in a 7.38 to 7.48 race, which meant Jarrett would go to the final to face Andy Vogt.

When the tree came down, Vogt broke on the launch, handing the win to Jarrett who sailed down the quarter with a 7.35.